1. Field
The present invention relates generally to graphical user interfaces and more specifically to browsing, viewing, and/or interacting with content items.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image browser is a software application that enables a user to browse multiple images. A conventional image browser displays images arranged in rows and columns, sometimes referred to as a grid, table, or list. If the source images are large relative to the available screen space, it is difficult to display several of the source images simultaneously. In this situation, a conventional image browser displays “thumbnail” versions of the source images rather than the source images themselves. A thumbnail version of a source image is smaller and/or of a lower resolution than the source image.
Sometimes, the image grid is larger than the window that is used to display the grid. The window acts like a “viewport” on top of the image grid that allows certain parts of the grid (those parts that are underneath the viewport) to be displayed. In this situation, more images exist than are currently displayed. In order to view these images, the image grid is kept stationary, and the user moves the viewport relative to the image grid, thereby allowing different parts of the grid (those parts that are underneath the viewport based on the viewport's new position) to be displayed. Alternatively, the viewport is kept stationary, and the user moves the image grid relative to the viewport, thereby allowing different parts of the grid (those parts that have moved to be underneath the viewport) to be displayed. This navigation functionality is commonly referred to as scrolling.